Why do Florists draw?

Tina Parkes drawing and design of a contemporary buttonhole to be placed in a jacket pocket.

You don’t have to be Rembrandt to achieve a drawing to work by. Don’t be put off if you are not artistic with a pen and pad as there are many techniques that you can use to help you put your idea/sketch down on paper, after all L.S. Lowry became famous for his stick men!

However, drawing, is a valuable tool in a floral designers work box, and as you progress as a designer, if you stick with it, it can become second nature to sketch designs as part of your planning, this is important for lots of reasons so here at the Academy of Floral Art we have put together ten top tips for drawing success:

Why draw?

1/ To see if the design in your head works and to communicate to others.

2/ As a check list for the Principals and Elements of design to consistently achieve an aesthetically pleasing creation.

3/ To work out the methodology of how you will construct the design.

4/ To record the composition into floral content, adding a legend of plant material in latin will help when coming to order the flowers.

5/ To problem solve. Fixing problems with a pencil is easier than creating the whole design.

6/ Buy: A clear pencil case (you need this for exams), a 2B and an HB pencil are softer and great for shading. Some watercolour pencils such as Derwent or Inktense (there are lots of brands out there, but these are our favourites), a fine paint brush and two black Staedtler outline pens 0.3m and 0.5m.

7/ In pencil draw your composition.

8/ Using a Staedtler outline pen draw over the pencil.

9/ Fill with the watercolour pencils and using a wet brush, paint in the colour.

10/ A copy of your watercolour drawing together with a photograph of your finished design makes a portfolio very special. N.B. when you get to City & Guilds Level 4 this is a requirement for your portfolio so starting earlier will be an asset.

Drawing can be as individual as the designer. Explore your skills and decide how your drawing will best help you achieve your goals, you don’t have to be botanically correct, simple line drawings using geometric shapes to give definition to specific flower content is equally as useful.